__NOTOC__ Reginald Walter Macan (1848 – 23 March 1941) was an Irish

classical scholar Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...

. He was educated at

University College, Oxford University College, formally The Master and Fellows of the College of the Great Hall of the University commonly called University College in the University of Oxford and colloquially referred to as "Univ", is a Colleges of the University of Oxf ...

, where he gained a First in Classical Moderations in 1869 and a First in Literae Humaniores ('Greats') in 1871. He held a Fellowship at the college (1884–1906) and was appointed Master in March 1906. He was only the second

layman In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. ...

Master of the college after Anthony Gate, Master from 1584 to 1597. Reginald Macan was originally from

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, and retained his Irish accent until the 1890s. He was an undergraduate at University College, Oxford, and then a "

Student A student is a person enrolled in a school or other educational institution, or more generally, a person who takes a special interest in a subject. In the United Kingdom and most The Commonwealth, commonwealth countries, a "student" attends ...

" (the equivalent of a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

) of Christ Church after obtaining his degree. He returned to University College as a Fellow and Tutor in 1884 until becoming Master of the college in 1906. He retired in 1923. Macan had a reputation as a heretic early in his career, but delivered addresses in the chapel at University College at least annually. Like his predecessor as Master, J. Frank Bright, he was nicknamed the "Mugger" by students. Macan applied archaeological discoveries to the study of ancient history. He produced a major set of books on

Herodotus Herodotus (; BC) was a Greek historian and geographer from the Greek city of Halicarnassus (now Bodrum, Turkey), under Persian control in the 5th century BC, and a later citizen of Thurii in modern Calabria, Italy. He wrote the '' Histori ...

. In 1913, Reginald Macan visited

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

and spoke at the Sphinx Club about

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international Postgraduate education, postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Esta ...

s at

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

. In 1881, Macan married Mildred Healey; they had three daughters, one of whom Agatha Perrin married

Eric Forbes Adam Eric Graham Forbes Adam (3 October 1888 – 7 July 1925) was a British diplomat and First Secretary to the Foreign Office. Adam was born in Malabar Hill, Bombay, India, the second son of Sir Frank Forbes Adam, 1st Baronet. His older brother w ...

. He retired to

Boars Hill Boars Hill is a hamlet southwest of Oxford, straddling the boundary between the civil parishes of Sunningwell and Wootton. It consists of about 360 dwellings spread over an area of nearly two square miles as shown on thimapfrom the long establ ...

, south of Oxford, and lived there till the age of 93.

Maurice Greiffenhagen Maurice Greiffenhagen (15 December 1862 – 26 December 1931

painted a formal portrait of Macan in academic dress, located at University College in Oxford.

References

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* 1848 births 1941 deaths 19th-century Irish people 20th-century Irish people People from County Dublin Irish classical scholars Alumni of University College, Oxford Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford Fellows of University College, Oxford Masters of University College, Oxford Classical scholars of the University of Oxford Historians of antiquity {{UOxford-stub